Children of Paradise (Criterion Collection)

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Poetic realism reached sublime heights with Children of Paradise (Les enfants du paradis), widely considered one of the greatest French films of all time. This nimble depiction of nineteenth-century Paris's theatrical demimonde, filmed during World War II, follows a mysterious woman (The Pearls of the Crown's Arletty) loved by four different men (all based on historical figures): an actor, a criminal, a count, and, most poignantly, a street mime (La ronde's Jean-Louis Barrault, in a longing-suffused performance for the ages). With sensitivity and dramatic lan, director Marcel Carn (Port of Shadows) and screenwriter Jacques Prvert (Le jour se lve) resurrect a world teeming with hucksters and aristocrats, thieves and courtesans, pimps and seers. Thanksto a major new restoration, this iconic classic looks and sounds richer and more detailed than ever.

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Poetic realism reached sublime heights with Children of Paradise (Les enfants du paradis), widely considered one of the greatest French films of all time. This nimble depiction of nineteenth-century Paris's theatrical demimonde, filmed during World War II, follows a mysterious woman (The Pearls of the Crown's Arletty) loved by four different men (all based on historical figures): an actor, a criminal, a count, and, most poignantly, a street mime (La ronde's Jean-Louis Barrault, in a longing-suffused performance for the ages). With sensitivity and dramatic lan, director Marcel Carn (Port of Shadows) and screenwriter Jacques Prvert (Le jour se lve) resurrect a world teeming with hucksters and aristocrats, thieves and courtesans, pimps and seers. Thanksto a major new restoration, this iconic classic looks and sounds richer and more detailed than ever.